Temecula parish to mark 100 years

Temecula's St. Catherine of Alexandria Catholic Church is about
to mark 100 years as a parish, a milestone that has congregants
recalling the church's venerable history and preparing to celebrate
the centennial anniversary in a big way.

The church was established in 1910 as a mission-parish without
an actual chapel to call its own; it has since grown to become a
thriving faith community situated on 8 acres, boasting nearly 5,000
parishioners, several buildings, and many ministries helping those
in need.

"We've been here for 100 years ---- that's a lot of history,"
said 18-year parishioner Jill Gonzales, who is coordinating the
church's three-day birthday party. Slated for mid-November, the
fete will include a wine tasting gala, fireworks and a
minicarnival.

"This is an exciting time," she said. "The church has helped a
lot of people over the years."

To mark the anniversary, church leaders have tapped local
historian Elaine Eshom to create a heritage booklet chronicling the
church's roots and evolution.

Eshom is pulling from a variety of sources, including
parishioners' photo albums, local Indian reservations' archives,
newspaper clippings, museum documentation and diocesan
publications.

In the beginning, as the West Coast became more populated in the
late 1800s and early 1900s, the need for a Catholic Church in
Temecula became pressing, Eshom said. Meeting in homes or at area
missions was not sufficient as the population of Catholics grew in
Temecula Valley, she said.

"Temecula may have had 200 to 300 people at this time, in 1910,
and for them to have enough people to build and support a church,
that is amazing," she said, adding that probably 50 percent of the
town belonged to the Catholic branch of Christianity, thanks to the
area's high percentage of Latino and Native American residents, who
were traditionally Catholic during those days.

In 1917, St. Catherine's original chapel was built in Old Town.
While not the first church in Temecula, it was the first building
constructed specifically as a place of worship, Eshom said.

Throughout most of the 1900s, it served as home base for the
parish, a landmark on Sixth and Front streets. But in the 1970s, as
the early traces of Southwest County's population boom began to
take hold, the congregation started to outgrow its chapel.

"We knew the way people were moving into the area that we needed
more space," said longtime Temecula resident Joe Cherpin, 84, a
retired winemaker who has attended St. Catherine's for 35
years.

In 1989, the church purchased nearly 9 acres on C Street, and
with big plans, its leaders sold the original chapel to the Old
Town Temecula Museum for a token $1 and headed to the new
property.

The chapel was moved to Sam Hicks Monument Park, refurbished,
and remains a popular venue for weddings and other events.

As for St. Catherine's, it was facing a major time of flux.
After the move, the congregation met under a tent for a few months
while infrastructure needs were worked out. It was an interesting
time, said the Rev. Anthony DiLeo, pastor emeritus, who led the
church from 1987 to 1999.

"With the winds blowing the tent during 5 o'clock Mass (on
Saturday evenings), it felt like it was going to take us with it,"
DiLeo said.

Despite a few growing pains, the congregation at that time came
through in a huge way with regard to the church's capital needs, he
said.

"We spent about $14 million on the buildings, and everything
was paid for by the time they were completed," he said, referring
to the meeting hall, classrooms, offices and sanctuary built in the
1990s. "They were very generous. I am proud of that, that they saw
the need and responded."

Today, the church's ministries include a food bank, homeless
and military outreach and support, care for the sick and elderly,
and donations directed to programs that aid the poor across the
globe.

As the congregation gears up for the celebration, members said
they hope a large crowd comes out ---- and not just Catholics.

"We want to welcome the entire community," said the Rev. Manuel
Cardoza, St. Catherine's associate pastor. "It will be a great,
grand event, celebrating 100 years of proclaiming the Gospel of
Jesus Christ."

DiLeo said that a big theme in the Catholic faith is
celebration, and that the party is no exception.

"It's a joyous occasion," he said. "The heritage of the Catholic
Church is we like to celebrate. We even talk about our services
being a celebration. Everything we do is basically a
celebration."